What is a case study?It is a procedure to research on a particular individual, team, or a situation over a time span. It is also an example which is used to analyze a principle or thesis.

Most of the case studies are to be written in the context of business and academics. The case study which is written in the academic style focuses on a small group or individual. It results in the formation of a detailed but specific reports as per the destination of the research. Whereas, in the marketing case studies, a success story is described to depict a company’s progress.

Let us begin a short journey of knowing some tips and tricks to write an effective academic case study.

1. Planning-

(a) Outline the subject of the study- An individual, an event or a small group of people are the main focus of a case study. A student or an individual who has a case study to write need to find the details related to the topic. Also, discover how the titles are affected. An academic case study may include medical and psychology case studies. Be it any of the form of case study, they are to be designed for small groups.

(b) Differentiate between prospective and the retrospective research- The first approach is used to perform new studies and the students need to do them on their own. It may involve small groups or the individuals. Whereas, the retrospective research analyzes a small groups of the cases related to a topic. There is no direct involvement of the subject in the case study. If you are writing a case study, the choice of the approach is up to you.

(c) Slender the researching aims- You may be assigned the goals of the case study by your professor or you may have the leniency of picking them on your own. But, read the main types case studies as per the goal choice.

i) Exploratory- Helps the students to guide a future by mentioning preliminary and large scale projects. Identifying the research questions and possible research approaches is the aim of the exploratory case studies.

ii) Critical-When we focus on the uniqueness of a case while writing a case study, that means we are writing a critical case study.

iii) Illustrative- When we try to make a situation familiar to others, then that study and description is termed as illustrative case study.

b) Ethical approval and its application- You must have a consent of law before beginning the task of writing a case study. You can do it by contacting any ethics department or institution. Then, you can propose the topic and the idea of writing a case study. You may be asked to prove that neither of the participants would be affected through your study. No matter whether you are conducting retrospective or prospective research for your case study, it would be better if you follow this.

c) Schedule long-term study- Every academic case study continues for the time range of 3-6 months. But there are many which takes years to accomplish. It entirely depends on the length and duration of your degree.

d) Create your research strategy- Make a plan that how you will carry out the research. Design the outline of answering of the research questions. The exact approach varies as per the topics but you can follow these tips.

i) Try to keep the content as simple as possible. You can also use bullet points. Approach the perspective point of question. Choose a minimum of two bullet points. Collect the reports, switch on your internet and conduct the research over the internet. Jump to the library and conduct the research.

2) Perform obstructive observation- Practice and learn how to depend on the reliable sources.

3) Take good notes- Make extensive notes while you conduct the research for your case study. It will help you in report compilation.

4) Ask your participants- In case you feel the need to interview your participants’ thoughts and views, go for it. In fact, you can do any number of times, either weekly or monthly. You can also prepare a planning phase of the set of questions for your interview process.

5) Data gathering- After the mentioning the data in the bullet points, you may need to pull information. It may require acute focus and concentration. Do it and collect it.

6) It’s time to finalize- The document which you have got till now is a descriptive report which includes analytical arguments. Now, write down the entire content. You now have the document in your hand.​7) Proofread it- Do not even think of skipping the editing step. It may lead to degraded performance. So, pay attention while double checking it. find even minute details. You can also ask someone else to do it for you.

Follow these tips the next time you have to write a case study and ace the task.